That would place him in court more than seven years after the grisly murder of a fellow Doña Ana County Detention Center inmate April 2, 2006.

Montoya's is the most prolonged murder case left unresolved at 3rd Judicial District Court, according to archives and attorneys, though it's not alone. At least nine murder cases, in which suspects were charged before 2012, remain open.

What is unique to Montoya's case, however, is the apparent root of the constant delays.

Court records show that actions of Montoya, a 36-year-old convicted murderer from Albuquerque, repeatedly have stalled numerous proceedings.

Andrew Garcia Martinez; Charged: February 2011

Last September the court scheduled a hearing in which Montoya was expected to change his plea to guilty. That hearing never unfolded because Montoya refused to get dressed, wearing only boxer shorts in the courtroom. He also cut his head by bashing it on a holding cell wall at the court, according to Sun-News archives.

That bizarre delay wasn't the case's first.

It began shortly after investigators accused Montoya of slashing another inmate with a jail-issued razor, reportedly because he was distraught over breaking up with a girlfriend — police found Montoya's ex-girlfriend's initials, a heart and the phrase "will she love me" written in blood near the body.

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Montoya refused an evaluation by one of his former attorneys in 2006, before eventually being sent to the New Mexico Behavioral Health Institute the following summer, court records state. In August of 2007, the court ruled Montoya is competent to stand trial.

He has made plenty of other court appearances.

Montoya was out on parole from a 1999 second-degree murder conviction, according to court documents, when he robbed three Las Cruces businesses in 2005.

Johnny Ray Vallejos; Charged: February 2011

That's why he was jailed during April of 2006, when the alleged murder occurred.

Since then, a jury convicted Montoya of the robberies, crimes which make up the bulk of his nearly 70-year prison sentence — even without considering the looming murder trial, that's already more than two life sentences.

Montoya also has been convicted on a 2008 charge of battery upon a peace officer.

Montoya also seems unsatisfied with his attorneys, according to court records. Two attorneys have motioned successfully to withdraw as Montoya's counsel, the most recent being the prominent Gary Mitchell, who had been trying since 2010, because Montoya claimed Mitchell was "doing nothing for him."

Todd Holmes is Montoya's third attorney in the 2006 murder case.

Eugene Ferri; Charged: April 2011

Holmes filed a motion for discovery on Feb. 7. A spokeswoman at his office said Holmes wasn't in a position to comment on the case because it is still new.

Prosecutor Jacinto Palomino said he anticipated it would be "at least three or four months," till the next trial date - the 14th such setting, according to online court data.

Montoya's history of disrupting court proceedings could result in his latest trial unfolding without him. Such situations are rare, but the Supreme Court has ruled that defendants can lose their right to being present at trial that person refuses, after a judge's order, to stop "disorderly, disruptive and disrespectful behavior.

Kemberlee Guffey; Charged: December 2011

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Here are eight other defendants in some of the murder cases that have been pending since at least 2011, and where those cases stand according to court records.

Problems with the indictment process has led to murder charges being filed against James Bogart three times. Police allege that Bogart, a 33-year-old confined to a wheelchair, shot a housemate after an argument in March of 2008.

Aside from the indictment issues, the parties have disputed the nature of his medical disorder and how it could effect his participation in the trial.

A 10-day trial is slated for April 1.

Three of the six co-defendants charged in connection to the November 2008 robbery and shooting death of a Mesilla Park man have unresolved cases. Eric Ontiveros, 39, has a change-of-plea hearing scheduled next month - common for this case, as three other co-defendants concluded their cases with plea-deal convictions. Oswaldo Corral, 34, and Lawrence Chavira, 24, remain on the run.

Andrew Garcia Martinez, 26, has his second-degree murder trial set for April 22 in District Court, more than two years after he allegedly bludgeoned a former Oñate football player during a fight at a party. The former athlete later succumbed to the injuries. Martinez's attorney, Joe Coronado, said it has taken time because the district attorney's office listed "more than 60 witnesses."

After Martinez allegedly killed the former football player and injured others during the party, four other young men sought revenge. By mistake, they shot and killed a former Vietnam veteran. Johnny Ray Vallejos, 18, is the only co-defendant remaining with a pending case. The others have reached plea agreements. Vallejos' attorney recently filed for a continuance.

Eugene "Gino" Ferri, 50, is charged with shooting to death in 2010 three former business partners who had sued him for more than $1 million. A May trial has been set for what former prosecutors described as a "complex" case. Bench changes have been common in this case. After the defense excused one judge, two other judges recused themselves from the case.

Investigators reportedly found 911 tapes that incriminated Kimberlee Guffey, 44, months after her husband was killed in what first appeared to be an accident. He had a puncture wound to his chest and prosecutors allege that Guffey stabbed him in May of 2011. Reassignments, excusals and recusals have shifted judges in this case, causing some delay. Guffey's attorney has filed a change-of-venue motion.

James Staley may be reached at 575-541-5476. Follow him on Twitter @auguststaley.